A Victory for the Tyrannized Ogadenis: a UN Office in Ogaden

With Darfur in mind, and following a flood of recent, revelatory publications, the UN took the decision to show a greater concern for the "Ethiopian Darfur in the making". After several months of horrendous experience, involving extrajudicial killings, massive arrests, imprisonment of thousands of innocent people, and deliberate obstruction in the delivery of humanitarian aid and food supplies, the development is expected to ease the disastrous situation in which Abyssinian dictator Meles Zenawi plunged Ogaden.

The fierce clashes and regular battles recently engaged between the Ogaden National Liberation Front fighters and the Tigray Abyssinian death squads who impersonate soldiers of the supposed ‘national armed forces’ of Abyssinia, fallaciously re-baptized ‘Ethiopia’, sent an alarming warning to international bodies, embassies and strategic analysts. The Ogadenis can achieve their Independence though a massive rebellion. Anticipating therefore a deterioration of the repressive tactics employed in Ogaden by the racist, totalitarian Tigray elite of the country, the UN took the decision to open an office at Ogaden in an effort to prevent any deterioration of the present crisis.

Alarming warnings about Tigray dictator Zenawi’s interest to pursue an anti-Ogadeni ethnic cleansing policy in Abyssinia’s Oil rich easternmost province mobilized therefore diplomats and statesmen who believe that One Darfur on African soil is already much. However, it remains to be seen whether Abyssinia’s tribal, dictatorial administration will finally allow the UN Ogaden Office fully function and flawlessly carry out its humanitarian program.

On this occasion, the ONLF issued today a statement to welcome the UN decision, urging that four key measures be adopted and implemented/enforced in Ogaden without any further detail, namely
1. lifting the ban on international journalists,
2. protecting civilians from the regimes armed forces,
3. resuming and increasing humanitarian assistance, and
4. seeking a comprehensive political settlement to the Ogaden conflict through an internationally mediated dialogue.

We publish the ONLF statement (http://www.ogaden.com/onlfp071107.htm) here, in its integral form, as it highlights ONLF’s commitment to International Law, respect of Human Rights, and devotion to Democratic procedure and rule.

O.N.L.F Statement On Opening Of UN Offices In Ogaden

Wednesday the 7th of November, 2007

The Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF) welcomes the decision of the United Nations to resume humanitarian activities in Ogaden which had been halted due to the blockade imposed by the Ethiopian regime led by the Tigray Peoples Liberation Front (TPLF). Despite this welcome announcement, it remains to be seen whether the TPLF regime will allow the United Nations to operate in a free and unfettered manner in Ogaden. The TPLF regime is still unjustly paranoid of international humanitarian organizations as demonstrated by the fact that it continues to deny the ICRC access to the Ogaden.

It is indeed an unfortunate irony that the same innocent people the United Nations intends to resume feeding continue to be killed by the TPLF regimes armed forces as they execute their genocidal policy in Ogaden. As such the ONLF also calls upon the United Nations to expedite the constitution of the UN fact finding team to investigate human rights abuses in line with the recommendations made by the recent humanitarian assessment mission to Ogaden.

It is only through a four pronged approach of lifting the ban on international journalists, protecting civilians from the regimes armed forces, resuming and increasing humanitarian assistance and seeking a comprehensive political settlement to the Ogaden conflict through an internationally mediated dialogue that the plight of the people of Ogaden can be best addressed.

Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF)
onlfpress@onlf.org

Note
Picture: Ogaden has been burnt out in several parts in an attempt for ethnic cleansing carried out by the Tigray Abyssinian dictator Zenawi.